Safety net for diaper tables



June 15, 1965 E. BROOKER SAFETY NET FOR DIAPER TABLES Filed June 18,1984 INYENTOR Eva Brooken United States Patent 3,188,984 SAFETY NET FORDIAPER TABLES Eva Brooker, P.O. Box 718, Stamford, Conn. Filed June 16,1964, Ser. No. 375,498 Claims. (Cl. 10826) This invention relates toinfant furniture and, more particularly, to dressing tables therefor.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a safety accessoryfor use with infant diaper tables, which will serve to guard against thefalling of an infant from the access side of the dressing table whenleft unattended.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a safety accessoryof the type described which is normally urged by spring means toward anoutwardly extended position relative to the access side of a dressingtable, but which may be readily displaced to an adjusted position withinthe confines of the dressing table when leaned .against by an attendantstanding adjacent the access side of the table, so that such net willreadily extend itself to a guarding position .as soon as the attendantleaves the side of the table. A further object of the present inventionis to provide a safety accessory of the type described having selfcontained counterbalancing means for maintaining the stability of thedressing table in the event that infant rolls into the outwardlyextended safety net.

'A further object of the present invention is to provide a safetyaccessory of the aforementioned type which can be readily built into newdressing tables, or which can be readily applied to existing models ofdressing tables in a simple and convenient manner.

All of the foregoing and still further objects and advantages of thisinvention will become apparent from a study of the followingspecification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing,wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of an infant diaper table having a safetyaccessory assembly made in accordance with the present invention mountedthereon;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged longitudinal cross sectional view taken alongline 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged transverse cross sectional view taken along line3-3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken along line 4-4 ofFIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken along line 5-5 ofFIGURE 3.

Referring now to the drawing, a safety accessory '19 made in accordancewith the present invention is shown mounted upon the underframe of aninfant dressing table having a bath receptacle 11, a rigid dressingpanel 12, a pocketed back panel 13, and .a depending leg assembly 14 andcross bar 16, which may be of generally conventional construction.

The safety accessory made in accordance with the present inventionincludes bracket means for attachment to opposite ends of the tableunderframe. Such bracket means includes a pair of tubular cross members18 each having a depending web 20 for mounting upon one end of the tableunderfrarne by means of hook type bolts 22 which engage behind theadjacent portions of the tubular legs 14 and extend through the web 20and threadedly support wing nuts 24. A pair of spacers 26 are used totake up the space between the webs 20 and the inwardly disposed pair oflegs 14, to provide for parallel mounting of both bracket members 18.

A three sided safety frame is provided which includes a longitudinalside bar 30 and a pair of cross bars 32, each connected at one end toone end of the side bar 30. The opposite ends of the cross bars 32 areslidably received within one end of the tubular bracket members 18,adja- 3,188,984 Patented June 15, 1965 cent the access side of theinfant support panel 12. The opposite ends serve as abutments for oneend of a pair of compression coil springs 36 which abut at theiropposite ends against the free ends of the cross bars 32 0f the safetyframe. The interior 38 of the side and cross bars 30, '32 slidablyreceive the heads 40 of fastener elements which project outwardly towardthe interior of the safety frame through a continuous slot 39 which isin alignment with a slot portion 41 in the outer ends of the crossmember 18. A spacer web 42 within the interior 38 of these membersmaintains the fastener elements in proper sliding engagement within theslots 39, 41.

Each fastener element is provided with a longitudinal, diametricallyetxending slot 4-4 which terminates short of the ends thereof oppositethe heads 40. These slots 44 slidably receive spaced strand portions ofa mesh type net 46, as is clearly shown in FIGURE 3.

Thus, the outermost side of the net is carried upon the side bar 30,whereas the opposite ends of the net are slidably carried upon the crossbars 32. The other side of the net is secured to a mounting rod 48extending between the tubular bnacket members 18. In the extendedposition of the safety frame as shown in FIGURE 1, the net 46 completelyfills the space between the side and cross bars of the safety frame.Normally, the safety frame is held in the inwardly disposed positionagainst the action of the spring 36 by an attendant standing adjacentthe access side of the dressing panel 12, at which time the sliderfastener elements 46 are compacted in the cross bars 32 between the rod38 and the side bar 30, so as to lie substantially disposed inwardly ofthe confines of the dressing table, with the side bar 30 substantiallyflush with the access side of the dressing table. As soon as theattendant leaves the access side of the table, the springs 36 move thecross bars 32 of the safety frame outwardly so that the safety frameassumes the guarding position shown in FIGURE 1.

Mounted upon the opposite end of each bracket member 18, is a receptacle50 having mounting webs 52 for secured mounting upon the bracket members18, such as by screws 54. Each receptacle 50, adjacent the upper endthereof, is also provided with a filler opening 56 normally closed by ascrew threaded plug 58, for filling the interior of the receptacle witha weighty fluent material 60, such as water, sand, or the like. Thesereceptacles 50, thus serve as counterbalancing means for maintaining thestability of the dressing table in the event that an iiifantaccidentally moves from the main panel 12, into the safety net 46 in itsextended position. Each receptacle 50 should be preferably filled withsufficient fluent material corresponding to slightly more than theweight of the infant, to therefore provide sufiicient counterbalance inthe event that the infant accidentally rolls from the panel 12 into thesafety net.

It will now be recognized that this device can be readily incorporatedin all types of dressing tables, as new equipment, or may be readilysold as an accessory for attachment to any standard infant dressingtable. Because of the extended coil springs 36, only a slight pressureis required to compress the springs by the attendant leaning against theside bar 30, to provide convenient and comfortable access to the accessside of the dressing table during use. However, the springs 36 aresufiiciently strong to extend the cross bars 32 of the safety net to theextended position shown in FIGURE 1, as soon as the attendant leaves theside of the table, thus ensuring the safety of the infant in the eventthat it accidentally rolls from the main support surface 12 of thetable. Furthermore, because of the sliding mounting fittings 40, carriedby the cross bar 32, the net is conveniently collapsed in the inwardlyextended position of the safety frame, so

as to avoid interference with the depending bath portionv 11 of thetable.

While this invention has been described with particular sory comprising,in combination; bracket means for attachment to opposite ends of thetab1eframe,'a safety frame sli dablyt carried 'by said bracket, meansfor'recipro eating lateral movement-relative to saidac'cess side of.said supporhpanel, spring means normally urging 'sa id safety frameoutwardly of said access side of said support panelito receive'an infantfalling from said support panel and' being overcome by" thelpressure ofa person leaning against said safety frame adjacent said ,faccess sideof a :said panel, and counterbalancing means carried by said a bracketmeans; adjacent the opposite side of, the panel to a V offset the weightof an infant received by saidsafetyframe.

v 2. In a diaper table'fas set forth in claim 1, wherein said bracketmeanscomp ris es guide meansv slidablysupporting said safety frame forreciprocating lateral movementrelative tothe access side of the infantsupport panel.

3. In a-diaper table as set forth in claim 2, wherein 4 said safetyframe comprisesta side vbarl and a pair of cross'bars each secured atone, end to one end of said side bar, said guide means slidablysupporting the opposite end ofsaid, cross bars, a rectangular netmounted within said '5' safety frame and securedon- 'three sidestoadjacent portions of: each of said side and cross bars, a

4. In a diaper'table asset forth in'c1airn3,fu'rther'comprising'mountingelements slidably carried by said side L5,.Ina diaper table as setforth in claim 4; wherein said counterbalancemeans comprises receptacles having means 15 for filling the interiorthereof witha heavy fluent material; I a 7 Q 7 V; Reference stcitedabythefExaminer V "V r UNITEDFSTATES PATENTS 7 620,277 'z/aa'case j 269716a o 970,207 19/10 "'Fost'er" ni v108 26 0,140,685 12/38 Baxter 1081192,708,323 -s/ 55 Cadde1 108 26X 25 2,827,953 3/58 2 Jones 297f1s22,841,797 7/58 Kennedy V 108-119 X 2,942,921 6/6 0 Rachman et a1..108--26 BQSHERRY BI imtIry Examiner.

1. IN A DIAPER TABLE HAVING AN UNDERFRAME AND AN INFANT SUPPORT PANELHAVING A FRONT ACCESS SIDE, A SAFETY ACCESSORY COMPRISING, INCOMBINATION, BRACKET MEANS FOR ATTACHMENT TO OPPOSITE ENDS OF THE TABLEFRAME, A SAFETY FRAME SLIDABLY CARRIED BY SAID BRACKET MEANS FORRECIPROCATING LATERAL MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO SAID ACCESS SIDE OF SAIDSUPPORT PANEL, SPRING MEANS NORMALLY URGING SAID SAFETY FRAME OUTWARDLYOF SAID ACCESS SIDE OF SAID SUPPORT PANEL TO RECEIVE AN INFANT FALLINGFROM SAID SUPPORT PANEL AND BEING OVERCOME BY THE PRESSURE OF A PERSONLEANING AGAINST SAID SAFETY FRAME ADJACENT SAID ACCESS SIDE OF SAIDPANEL, AND COUNTERBALANCING MEANS CARRIED BY SAID BRACKET MEANS ADJACENTTHE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE PANEL TO OFFSET THE WEIGHT OF AN INFANTRECEIVED BY SAID SAFETY FRAME.